Guardian Angel
by kandyblood
Summary: John is very willing to ignore the hallucination he's having about Dave, the new student who's perfect in every way- not that John's a homosexual!- because he's sure that no one else sees the glossy crow wings sprouting from Dave's back. As it turns out, John is very right, and Dave is much more than he seems.
1. Prologue

John Egbert thinks that he's a pretty normal kid. He has normal friends, goes to a normal school, has a dad that's just as embarrassing as the next guy's, and plays piano. It's nothing new.

He's also almost one hundred percent he's not crazy.

But then, how else could he explain the wings tucked against the back of the new kid?

"…And I'm sure you'll all afford him a warm welcome," the teacher finishes, snapping John out of his shock. "If you'd like to say a little about yourself, David?"

"Just Dave, actually. I'm from Texas, I've got an older brother, and I like to mix music."

All John can do is stare. Dave is aware of those, right? They're big, too, big and black and glossy. Like a crow, his brain reminds him unhelpfully. He glances around the room surreptitiously, but they all look like they're just seeing a normal kid.

Well, a really, really attractive kid, but certainly not one with wings.

Whoa. Egbert, slow the fuck down. You are not a homosexual, remember? You like tits. And curves. And girls, and definitely NOT Dave-with-the-wings. Besides, the dude's wearing shades inside. That's just plain pretentious.

John takes a deep breath and closes his eyes for a brief second, hoping that when he opens them again everything will be normal.

He's so wrong, he might not ever be right again. In fact, Dave not only still has wings but is in fact sitting right next to him. He looks over when John jumps about ten feet out of his chair.

"You got a problem, bro?"

"What? No! Haha, of course not, why would I have a problem?" John titters nervously, focusing very, very hard on Dave's freckled nose and not on the wings that are rustling against his back as he leans forward over the desk.

"You're white as a sheet, dude. I dunno if that's just a normal state of being for you or what, but I ain't a ghost or anything."

"Wh-what? I never said anything about ghosts!"

"Calm down, dude. What's your name, anyway?"

Breathe, John, breathe. Take a deep air of breath. Breath of air! You mean breath of air, and you are definitely not flustered!

"Uh. John. I'm John."

"Cool. I'm Dave, obviously. Nice meetin' you."

John takes a deep, calming breath, as he instructed himself to do earlier. Just because someone has wings that no one else can see doesn't mean that they're not good friend material!

"You too! Do you want to sit with my friends and I at lunch today?"

Dave gives him a weird sideways glance but shrugs. "Sure. I don't have anything better to do."

"Cool." John grins, resolving that, wing hallucinations or not, he is going to do his very best to be friends with this new guy.

"Uh, no. Don't listen to this loser, Dave. Egderp here will get you, like, negative points on the cool-o-meter."

Vriska Serket is John's ex-girlfriend, and she hates his guts because he broke up with her in sophomore year. She'd started smoking, drinking, and generally doing things that made him uncomfortable, and his dad had agreed with him about cutting it off. She is also currently draping her arm over Dave's shoulder, looking at John with obvious distaste.

"Thanks, doll, but I think my 'cool-o-meter' is so high that even you can't bring it down a notch. Why don't you go fuck off, and I'm sure we'll be great friends. Tighter than a neon rubber band on the nerdiest braces," Dave replies scathingly before John even has a chance to reply. The entire classroom goes silent, staring at him with blatant disbelief. Vriska's gaze turns cold as a cruel smile curls her lips.

"Oh, we will, honey. Don't you even worry about it."

And she walks off, hips swaying and back straight.

John is still staring at Dave. "Dude, are you insane?! She's gonna eat you alive!"

He laughs, quiet and derisive. "Like to see her try. She's just pickin' on you 'cause she's got nothin' better to do."

John just shakes his head. "You're braver than I am. Most people are terrified of her."

"Not me, I guess. Anyway, where do y'all meet for lunch?"

"Oh, you still want to do that? We're outside by the big oak tree."

"Sweet. I'll see you there."

John doesn't have time to respond, since the bell rings as he opens his mouth. "Oh. Yeah, bye!"

He scurries off to his Pre-Calc class, but logarithmic functions are replaced with blonde hair that looks really soft (not that he's thinking about that!), freckles, and a really adorable smirk.

Platonically adorable, of course. John's not a homosexual.

* * *

Lunch is great. Very tasty, actually; John's dad makes turkey and cheese with exactly the right ratio of mayonnaise to bread. Not too soggy, not too little.

But mostly it's Dave.

He's surprisingly funny and easy to get along with. Rose and Jade take to him immediately, and even Kanaya smiles at some of his better jokes. Karkat is cranky and cantankerous, as per usual, but his insults are far less barbed than usual and John can tell that he's softening more every second.

"…But that's when I'm just like, 'dude, you suck so bad you're practically a vampire.'"

The whole group bursts out laughing; even Karkat, who's been pretending not to listen, has to disguise the milk coming out his nose with a spluttering cough. Dave smirks (god, that smirk) and leans back on his elbow, sipping at a bottle of apple juice. John feels an odd swell of pride in his chest as he watches his friends. He has no reason to be proud. Dave's not his friend - he just met him today, for crying out loud! - but he does nonetheless.

Also, it might be just him, but those wings are really attractive.

John is starting to think that he might be a little bit homosexual.

Dave, as it turns out, has classes with him all afternoon, and John is unreasonably happy about it. They quickly fall into an easy routine, trading insults and answers like old friends. John finds it remarkably easy to get past the wings, because Dave is… well, he's perfect. Exactly what he'd always wanted in a guy friend; Karkat is great and all, but he's gruff and sometimes just can't take a joke.

Dave, though, Dave is a different kettle of fish all together. John doesn't know how entirely right he is yet, but he can already tell…this is something new.

**Written for Ferrah, who asked for no NSFW and some John/Dave. Hope I delivered, dear, and I'm sorry I didn't get to it until two days before it was due!**  
**~kandyblood**


	2. Chapter 1

"John and Dave, you have Egyptian symbolism."

Dave and John high-five each other when the teacher announces it, both grinning. It's been almost seven months since Dave arrived at the school, and he and John are thick as thieves. Practically the whole school knows about "those two juniors who are totally going out but won't admit it," a rumor that is not discouraged by the fact that they are rarely seen apart besides for classes.

"You wanna come over tonight to get started?"

Dave laughs, more of an amused huff of air than anything. "Dude, we've got till the end of term."

"Yeah, but we should get on top of it! Procrastination is never a good thing, Dave, we've been over this!" John chides.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll come over."

"Sweet! Meet you there?"

"Yeah, sure. Should I swing by my place and grab a toothbrush and stuff?"

"Yeppers."

"Bro, did you actually just say 'yeppers'?"

"Yeppers," John repeats, grinning. Dave half-laughs again, shoving John's shoulder good-naturedly.

"You're dumb."

"And you love me anyway."

Dave sighs dramatically and rolls his eyes. "Sure, Egbert."

John laughs, wondering what he did to have a friend like Dave Strider.

They've spent the past five hours horsing around on John's computer, surfing YouTube, listening to music, chatting, and basically getting nothing done at all. Finally John suggests a break from "working" to get some pizza, and they end up curled on the couch with pizza, popcorn, some soda, and Raising Arizona. John has his head on Dave's shoulder, his eyelids drooping a little as he cradles his off-brand orange soda.

"Whoa there, Baby Blues, don't fall asleep on me. This hot shoulder prefers to be drool-free, thanks. Your mouth-slime is gonna infect my cool, and then where will we be? In a lonely world without dry shoulders and irony straight from the fire, that's where. What's that? I'm sorry, Dave, I won't let my gross slobber soak into your hot bod anymore? Well, thank you, that wasn't so hard, now was it?"

John's laugh is muffled by Dave's shirt. "Shut up, dude, you're word-vomiting all over our nice couch."

"You wish you had this kind of eloquence, Egbert."

"Okay, Dave," John says sleepily, yawning a bit. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You're going to anyway, so what's the point of asking me?"

"Mm, fair enough. Why do you have wings?"

John feels Dave tense below him and he sits up, blinking the grogginess away. "Oh, shit, that's not what I meant to say-"

Dave cuts him off. "I thought this might happen."

"You what."

He sighs, long and low, and rustles them deliberately. "Yeah, they're not hallucinations. These babies are real as shit."

How does he know about my hallucinations?!

"Dave, you're scaring me a little."

"Dude, you're the one who's been ogling my back for the past seven months," he replies dryly, a hint of bitterness coloring his voice. "This happens every time. I thought you'd just ignore it, you know? Or accept it."

"I did! I did a damn good job of ignoring it for seven months!"

"Yeah, but you just couldn't keep your curiosity down, could you? No. Damn it, John, I got attached to you!"

"What do you mean you got attached to me?" Cold fear grips John's lungs, and suddenly he can't breathe. "Are you leaving? Dave, what's going on?"

Dave sighs, scrubbing his hands down his face and knocking his glasses a little bit askew. "I'm not a human, John. Not anymore."

"What?" John squeaks. It's all he can seem to manage.

"…Do you have any paper?"

John hands some over, still looking hopelessly confused, and Dave scribbles something on it quickly.

"Okay, so this is how angels are set up."

"Angels? Angels are fake, dude."

"John, you dumbass, you've been attached at the hip to one for the past seven months," Dave snaps, uncharacteristically annoyed.

"You can't be an angel."

"John Egbert! Open your eyes, wake up, and smell the roses! You're not in Kansas anymore, this is real life shit!" For a moment, just a fraction of a second, John thinks he sees Dave's skin glow. But that's not possible, because angels do not exist.

"Dave-"

"Fuck it. Look."

Dave whips off his shades, and, for the first time ever, John catches a glimpse of Dave's eyes. They're red, the purest red John's ever seen, and for a minute his breath is stolen. In Dave's eyes he can see everything. Life and death, pain and beauty, the whole universe and countless other ones laid out, layered over one another, and blotting out everything with their spiraling brightness and darkness that shouldn't make sense but do. And for a moment John feels infinite, like he can live forever and be forever and just see, into forever, and never come out.

And then Dave's shades go back on, and all John can see is the glow of the television as the credits roll, soaking the living room in sickly artificial light.

"Oh," he breathes.

"Yeah, 'oh.' Go ahead and have your existential crisis now, I'll wait," Dave says, sounding tired and resigned. His arm has retreated from where it was resting near John's knee, and he looks painfully lonely. Something sharp tugs at John's chest.

"Don't be dumb, Dave. Were you ever a human? How did you die? Why are you here? Is it only me that can see the wings? Why? How come you didn't tell me before? Has this happened with other humans? What did they do?"

Dave just stares in disbelief. "Seriously?"

"Seriously what?"

"You're just…I whip off the shades, tell you I'm an angel, and you're just good with it?"

"Well, yeah. Why wouldn't I be? I mean, it's a pretty big relief that I haven't been hallucinating about the wings! And besides, you're my best friend. A little thing like divinity doesn't change that."

Dave is silent, disbelief radiating from him like heat from a furnace. When he does speak, it's still got a note of doubt in it. "I was a human, once. I died in a street fight, trying to help this girl. She was fine," he adds quickly, seeing the concerned look on John's face. "Anyway. If you'd looked at my goddamn chart you'd know that I'm a guardian angel. If you die protecting someone, that's what you become. It can be as unspecific as soldiers that die in battle, too. Generally, they're looked down upon, because the older angels think they're just errand guys and more often than not we create more work than we alleviate. Some guardian angels don't like their jobs because if the human figures out you're an angel…well, their memories are erased because they literally can't handle the truth, and the angel is shunted over to the next person. You're the only one that can see these," he flaps his wings a bit, "because you're more perceptive than most, and because I'm your guardian. There's also a myth that guardian angels were originally given the job they have to find their soul mate in another life, and that they're the only ones that can see the wings…but, well, that's just a myth. All the other humans I've been put in charge of have been…not as good. I never really minded the job, because I never got too emotional about the people and it wasn't a huge loss when their memories were erased by the higher-up angels."

John listens to Dave's speech raptly, fingers tightening around his bottle of soda. "But you'll mind if they erase my memory."

Dave's wings seem to droop. "You don't get it, John. It's not an 'if.' It's a 'when.'"

"But if I can handle it and accept it and don't tell anyone-"

"There's never been an exception."

"…Oh."

"Yeah. Oh. And you just had to be so fucking happy and eager and funny and adorable, and now it's going to suck, because I have to put up with some clueless asshole who's going to forget me anyway." To John's horror, Dave's voice sounds strained and tight, like he's going to cry. The freckles on his pale nose start to be swallowed up by red splotches.

"Dave."

"No, John, don't."

He takes a deep breath and it all comes rushing out anyway. "Dave, you're the best friend I've ever had, and I knew that you'd be perfect and amazing as soon as I saw you, and then I was proven right, and you're so perfect, you don't even know. And before you came, I knew, I knew that I was definitely not a homosexual, that I liked girls, and then you waltzed in with those wings and that smirk and I just…I couldn't help but love you, all of you, even if you were a guy, even if you were sometimes a jerk, and I still can't help it, and surely angels wouldn't ruin that?"

Dave looks up from where his chin has been resting forlornly on his knees. "…You actually mean that. Oh my god, you actually mean that." He sounds mystified, like he can't believe that John is real.

The black-haired human turns red. "Um. Yeah. Yeah, I guess I do."

There is a long silence. "Me too."

"What?"

"Me too."

"…Okay."

"Good."

"Yeah."

Dave smiles sadly. "Maybe you should sleep, John."

"But-"

"Sleep."

At Dave's command, John's eyelids grow heavy, and he nods sleepily. "Alright."

And he sleeps. Still, peaceful, and curled up on the couch with the nice upholstery, popcorn kernels flattened underneath him, orange soda in hand, John Egbert sleeps. Dave just sits and watches him, savoring the last few hours, minutes, seconds, that he has with the knowledge that John remembers him. He pretends that when John wakes up, they'll clean up the popcorn, laughing and throwing it at each other, and Dave will see those blue eyes light up with laughter because of him. He makes himself believe, for a precious length of time, that he is still human and that this can work.

**Comments are always appreciated. :3**  
**~kandyblood**


	3. Chapter 2

Dave doesn't realize that he's fallen asleep until he wakes up in a room so bright it hurts his eyes. He's without his shades, unsurprisingly, and he's naked as the day he was born. Immediately he recognizes it—the trial room, where the higher-up angels decide the fates of angels and mortals alike. Contrary to popular belief, God isn't in charge here. He is more a representation of the collective power of angels, created long ago by some of the more enlightened humans to explain what they saw. It's far more civilized than a dictatorship; every so often, angels elect new officials to make fair judgments. There's no real time frame for these elections, as they just happen when someone thinks the need arises.

As it happens, Dave's very close friend, Dirk, is on the High Council at the moment. His orange eyes are soft, which surprises Dave. Usually his bro (figuratively, of course) is calm, cool, and collected. Rarely does he show emotion, and rarer still when he's taking care of official business. The jewel-colored eyes of the other angels blink down at him, a thousand windows into infinity. Dave steels himself, standing up straight and waiting for the announcement.

Dirk steps up to the podium in the center of the blank white room, his magpie wings extended comfortably away from his body.

"It has come to the attention of the High Council that your designated human, whom you have protected and watched over for the past seven months, has become aware of your true nature."

Dave stands numbly, staring up at him hopelessly.

"However-"

His heart leaps a little.

"-It is also true that John Egbert saw your wings all along, indicating that he may have suspected or even known all along."

Dave crosses his fingers behind his back, covering them with his wing. "Yes?"

"Not only that, but he has accepted the truth and does not appear to have any wish to reveal the existence of angels to the world, as he has never mentioned your wings prior to this incident."

He quashes the hope rising in his chest, not daring to jinx it. "All of the above statements are as stated," is his clear reply.

"Very well. Bring the human to us, if you would, Dolorosa."

"Of course," says a lovely, short-haired angel with blue jay wings and a kind smile. In an instant, John is standing next to Dave.

"Dave? What- where are we? Why are we naked? Why's it so bright?"

It's all Dave can do not to laugh. "Shut up, dude, you're at angel HQ. Try not to let your stupid show too much," he says quietly enough that John is the only one to hear. John tries and fails to stifle a grin.

Dirk clears his throat. "John Egbert, please answer the following questions with true or false statements. One: you have been aware of David's wings for seven months and fourteen days."

"True."

"Two: you were just now made aware that this is because he is a guardian angel."

"True."

"Three: you have accepted this and do not believe it makes a difference."

"Definitely true."

"Just true or false, please. Four: you do not plan to reveal this knowledge to anyone."

"False. Duh," he adds quietly. Dave can tell that Dirk catches it because of the crinkle in the corner of his left eye, but the older angel doesn't comment.

"The High Council will deliberate for a short time. Silence is appreciated."

Dave and John look at each other, John with confusion and Dave with a grin. A bucktoothed mouth opens, presumably to ask a question, but Dave puts his finger to his lips.

"An agreement has been reached. David, you are to stay with this human until he reaches the end of his natural lifespan. You, too, will appear to age, in order to keep up a human pretext. If, when he dies, it is deemed appropriate, he will become an angel in full capacity and you will be promoted from guardian to watcher, as is the custom for guardians that get their human all the way through life."

Dave can't stop it; this time, the laugh bubbles free of his chest, the sound of unaltered joy and relief ringing through the angelic domain. John grins and sweeps Dave into a hug.

The last thing Dave sees is Dirk's genuine smile before it all fades, leaving behind the taste of sweet happiness and the echo of softness from where his hand touched John's hair.

* * *

Dave blinks awake, only to be greeted by a large eyeful of John Egbert. He grins and John grins back, and Dave feels his fake heartbeat in synch with John's real one, and everything is right in their world.

"Dave?"

"Yeah?"

"Do angels get morning breath?"

Dave giggles giddily and leans down, brushing John's nose with his own. "You tell me."

The ending of the Princess Bride is no match for this kiss. It's got the soft newness of a first one, with the familiarity and certainty that happens when two people know each other better than they know themselves. It's passionate and chaste and sweet and loving, and it's perfect.

And Dave thinks, in that moment, that perhaps he's found Heaven after all.

**And there it is! I know it's short, I'm sorry, I may work on it sometime in the future to make it a little less rushed. Lots of love and I hope it's up to snuff.**  
**~kandyblood**  
**PS. Comments are very nice!**


End file.
